Jack and the Globe Lights
by sjsreader
Summary: At a monthly Guardian meeting, Jack is discovered to have a unique talent involving the lights on the Globe.
1. Chapter 1

_Quick thank you to my editor/cheerleader/support group for this story emmanemmssa. You rock, friend!_

 _Disclaimer- I am not fortunate enough to own Rise of the Guardians, or anything Dreamworks. Wouldn't that be nice though?_

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"Ah, Bunny, but do people start singing of your holiday the previous month?"

"Look here North, Christmas music is ovah played while Easter music is…"

The Guardians of Childhood had gathered for their monthly meeting to discuss their various tasks. Now that the business part of the meeting was over, they were all sitting and chatting in the Globe Room. Well, if by chatting you mean North and Bunny were arguing over whose holiday was better, and Tooth was excitedly telling Sandy (who was nodding tiredly while yawning) about a "perfectly flossed left central incisor" one of her fairies found, then yes, they were chatting. Jack was floating around the Globe, studying the lights with an intense gaze, a curious look occasionally crossing his face.

"And- eh, Jack, whatcha doin' there?" Bunny broke off from his tirade to look at Jack, staring absorbedly at the lights. This caught the attention of the rest of the Big Four, and they stopped to listen to the response.

"Mmm? What? Oh, I'm just trying to figure out if Joe, Luke, and Logan are inside the mountain this time, or just out in Joe's grandma's backyard. They live right by the mountain, so it's a little hard to tell," Jack explained distractedly, still focused on the lights. Then the sudden silence from the Guardians prompted him to look over at them.

They were staring at him, North with his thick eyebrows furrowed, Bunny with his eyebrows raised, Sandy with wide eyes, and Tooth with her head tilted.

"What?" Jack questioned with a slightly sharp and defensive tone.

"Da, um… Jack, are you naming the lights?" North's tone was a mixture of curiosity and slight amusement.

"Ah, no, no I'm not. These are Joe, Luke, and Logan's lights. I'm trying to figure out where they are in the mountain. I mean, they spend a lot of time in there, like IN the mountain, and… " Jack trailed off with an uncertain look at the shocked Guardians. "Guys, explain the looks, you're freaking me out."

Tooth flew over by Jack and looked at the multitude of lights that flickered on the globe. "Jack, you can tell which light is which child?" She glanced at him.

He cocked his head. "Yeah. Can't you guys?"

The response involved shaking heads and a golden floating X from Sandy, who joined Tooth in the air to study the lights. North and Bunny just exchanged looks. Tooth pointed at a certain light in Louisiana. "So you can tell who this light belongs to?"

"Sure," Jack promptly responded with a smile. "Mary Katherine, she's a big believer, which is why her light is so bright."

North called out from the balcony where he was still standing with Bunny "Sandy, I can't tell from here, is that light brighter?" Sandy leaned in and double checked before giving two thumbs up.

"Weird," Bunny muttered under his breath. But Jack still managed to catch it and sent him an insulted look.

"Hey, Kangaroo, just because you can't do it isn't a reason to say that," he said with a pout.

"OI! I am NOT a kangaroo!"

Jack crossed his legs in the air sitting Indian style and smirked. "Hey, I call 'em as I see 'em." Then his smirk turned to a contemplative look while Bunny grumbled at the hated nickname. Jack sat still for a few moments, then a lightbulb seemed to go off in his head. "Ah."

"What's that Sweet Tooth?" Sandy echoed Tooth's inquiry with a question mark and a smile.

"I think I just figured out why you guys don't know the lights." Jack smirked a little at the sudden stillness of his friends.

"Well? Don't leave us hangin' mate!" Bunny said impatiently. "What's the secret?"

"Wow, pushy much, Bunny?" Jack chuckled. "Maybe I'll just keep it to myself then," he said, milking the moment. It wasn't often he knew something his older and more experienced friends didn't. Immediately Tooth flew over to the balcony to tackle Bunny, putting a hand over his mouth. Sandy followed with an exclamation mark, ready to knock him out with dream sand. Bunny lifted up his hands in surrender from the floor, wide eyed at the force that was their fairy friend.

Laughter rang through the rafters. "Nice tackle there, Tooth! Great form! Okay, I guess I'll tell you. Guys, you really just need to get out more. I'm out playing with kids all the time, I get to know them pretty well. But all you guys do is work in your lairs, it's no wonder you can't tell them apart."

"Lairs…?" North muttered quietly, afraid of setting Tooth off, who was now glaring at him after letting Bunny up.

Sandy waved a flag to catch Jack's attention, then pointed to himself before making sand images of sleeping children and waves of dreamsand. "Okay, so you get out more too, Sandy, sorry. I'm not sure why you don't connect them then..."

"Now hold on a second mate, we go out into the field," Bunny interrupted, crossing his arms and tapping his foot on the floor.

"Yeah, like once a year," Jack countered, spinning to face Bunny. "Let's see, how did you phrase it North, 'we are too busy bringing to joy to children, we don't have time for children' " he said in a bad Russian accent. North had the decency to look abashed while Sandy sent Jack a question mark. "Oh, it was a comment North made when Sophie almost crashed Easter that one year you were MIA." A shadow crossed Jack's face at the thought.

Sandy shook his head at the other Guardians in disbelief. They all looked at the ground with a small amount of shame and sadness, recalling that Easter and everything that had happened.

Jack shook off the cloud of depression and laughed at their reactions. "Anyway, it was a helpful talent to have when there was this one light left somewhere in North America. I don't know if you noticed, but there are a lot of lights in that particular continent, so being able to know it was Jamie helped me get there in time."

"In time for what, Jack?" Tooth questioned, glad to have a change in subject. But it was Jack's turn to look away. "It's nothing Tooth, just managed to make it there before you guys did."

Bunny however sensed something more to the story, and wouldn't let it go. "Come on mate, I have a rabbit's sensitive nose, and I'm smelling a lie."

Jack glared at him. "I'm not lying Bunny. I don't do that."

"Fine, but you aren't telling the whole story," Bunny said matter-of-factly. "And don't try to get weasel out of it," he warned when he saw Jack open his mouth with an indignant face. Jack made a face, then sighed, realizing that Bunny wasn't going to drop the subject. He would have preferred to keep this story to himself, but it probably would have came out eventually.

"Guys, it's really not a big deal." Bunny gave him a look that had him rolling his eyes before looking down at his staff. "But… you know when you showed up on the sleigh and Jamie came out?" Everyone but Sandy nodded. "Well, just before that, I got there in time to hear Jamie talking to his stuffed bunny. He was asking for a sign that the Easter Bunny was real." Jack faltered, giving a look to Bunny, who wilted, realizing that a stuffed animal wouldn't be able to reassure a flickering belief. "He said any sort of sign would work, he just needed to know seeing you guys wasn't a dream. He waited a second, then… he dropped the bunny." The Guardians all gaped at this, how close they came to losing the last light.

Tooth blinked at the revelation, then looked sharply up at Jack. "Wait- but he believes now. He has one of the strongest beliefs of any child. How did he go from not believing to that?"

Jack blushed a light shade of purple. "Um… I may or may not have drawn pictures in the frost on his window." The rest of the Guardians stared at him with a bit of confusion. Sandy formed a question mark from his sand, wanting to know more about what happened while he was out of the picture.

"Well, I made this Easter egg on the window, and this Bunny, then the bunny came to life and started hopping around and then it burst into snow," Jack started rambling from his nervousness but slowed at this part. "And then… Jamie said my name. He said my name and he heard me and he SAW me," he said quietly, with wonder in his voice and a light in his eyes. A telling wetness glimmered in the corners of his eyes at the memory.

The rest of the Guardians could only wonder at how this must have affected Jack. 300 years of not being seen, of total loneliness, then the last light of the world, who had just stopped believing in the biggest legends of all, began believing in Jack Frost.

"Jack…" Bunny murmured quietly, not wanting to break the spell that circled the room at the story. Then Jack grinned and shook his head, shattering the moment. "Like I said, not a big deal now. Jamie believes, and so do other kids, and Pitch is in hiding, and everything is great."

"Not a big deal? Jack! Is very big deal! You saved us, you kept Jamie believing!" North exclaimed loudly, throwing his hands up in the air. Tooth joined in the vocal protest, with Sandy offering a silent support.

Bunny was quieter with his protest. "Jack, you did that… after everything that we did? After everything that I did?"

Jack gave Bunny a soft quirk of his mouth. "It was the right thing to do. I know what it's like to be walked through; you shouldn't have had to deal with that." His eyes glimmered for another moment. Then his grin widened to and he threw his arms out to the sides. "Anyway, guys, I have some snow to deliver in Burgess, I'll see you later." He darted out an open window, leaving the awkwardness behind with the stunned others. He quickly wiped the traitorous tears from his eyes. "No, Wind, I'm fine, I'm fine. Let's just go see Jamie." Wind knew better, but carried him there anyway. Jamie would make him smile again.

Inside the Globe Room, Sandy turned to his fellow legends, a serious look on his face. The others immediately knew what he wanted. It was time for a LONG discussion on the virtues of being out with the kids, as well as a detailed report of EXACTLY what Sandy had missed that Easter.

They all dreaded it.

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 _A/N: Hello, and thank you ever so much for your reading of my story. I appreciate it a large amount, you wonderful person, you! I would be even MORE appreciative if you left me a review telling me how you think I did. I welcome constructive criticism and adore positive reviews. However, I ask that you be courteous and polite with your reviews. Writing is hard, publishing is harder, but taking out the rude people who dare try to burn up what little confidence we can work up would be a pleasure. Seriously, think to yourself, "Would I like it if someone wrote this about my story?"_

 _Anyway, sorry about that. I love you for reading this! REVIEW!_


	2. Chapter 2

_Updated edit: Okay, I know I already posted this chapter, but I went back and fixed some things *cough cough accents* that were pointed out to me. It's still basically the same, so if you've already read it you don't have to reread it. Unless you want to. Thanks D C JoKeR H S for your advice!_

 _Many thanks to Frosted Dragon Heart and her unconditional support. Merry (late) Christmas, my friend!_

_You could all consider going and reading her stuff- she's pretty fantastic._

 _But first read this. Read it and suffer._

 _Also, Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. Or the main story that we all love so much. Just my own ideas._

Rare was the moment that the North Pole, center of all Christmas Wonder, was silent, but at that moment, even the jingling of the elves' bells was quiet.

Sandy stared, wide-eyed, at his fellow Guardians (minus Jack, who was center of what they had just discussed). He voiced his disbelief with the biggest question mark he could create with his dream sand, followed by several exclamation points, the message clear. They had done WHAT?!

"We know, we know, Sandy," Bunny said, ears drooping with dejection. "It was terrible, what we did to 'im. Believe me, no one could possible feel worse about this than we do." The unspoken thought of what Jack had done to save the last light, despite the way he had been treated, went through all of their minds. North and Tooth murmured agreement as they shrunk in on themselves a little in shame.

Sandy floated for a moment, expression morphing started jerking his arms about, looking like he was about to sign something before changing his mind several times. Eventually he gave up and summoned his dream sand cloud and flew up to the ceiling to just sit for several minutes, pinching the bridge of his nose in muted frustration.

Sandy shook his head and gave a soundless sigh, dragging his hands down his face before coming back down. He threw up another question mark.

"Why?" Bunny checked. Sandy nodded tiredly.

"Why what?" North asked in confusion, looking to Bunny. Sandy was normally easy for them all to understand, but when they couldn't, Bunny was the best at translating.

Sandy gestured to the three of them, then made a megaphone shape before making a snowflake.

"Why did we yell at Jack," Bunny translated.

Tooth jumped in. "Well, Pitch had just come through and destroyed all the eggs for Easter, and Jack hadn't come back like he said he would, and Baby Tooth was gone…" Tooth trailed off when Sandy's eyebrows furrowed. He spread his arms out in front of him, questioning with his eyes.

"Where DID Baby Tooth go, Sheila?" Bunny asked, turning to Tooth. "We never did ask."

Tooth's eyes furrowed, thinking. "I…" she started before breaking off and turning to one of the fairies hovering near her in concern. "Girls, would one of you go get Baby Tooth?" One chirped in assent before flitting through the window.

She waited a moment before starting again. "I never did ask, things just got so busy after we defeated Pitch. Getting the teeth put back, the fairies back on task, it's not easy!" She added the last bit defensively.

North put a calming hand on her shoulder, his hand dwarfing her a little. "'It's fine, Toothie. We will find out soon what happened."

Sandy waved his arms to catch their attention before creating a few images with his sand. Why didn't they ask Jack what had happened?

Bunny hung his head in sorrow, thinking back on the events of the day. "After Pitch ruined most of the eggs, I couldn't get them out in time. The ankle bitah's stopped believing in me, they WALKED THROUGH ME." He broke off, calming himself down. "I was hurting, and then Jack showed up and I just lashed out, didn't even stop to ask what took so long…" He looked down in shame. "Or if I did, I didn't stop to listen for the answer."

Tooth immediately fluttered over to him, putting a hand on his shoulder comfortingly. "None of us did, Bunny."

"It was still mostly me," he muttered. "I said we shouldn't have trusted 'im."

North clapped his hand on Bunny's shoulder. "No, my friend, we all had hand to play, equal blame." His face twisted in regret. "I believed he was with Pitch. I should have had more faith in him."

"You didn't almost punch 'im in the face, North," Bunny countered.

Sandy's head shot straight towards Bunny, eyes almost comically wide. Bunny winced. "Did I forget to mention that little detail earliah?"

Sandy nodded, eyebrows raised and eyes narrowed. Luckily for Bunny, Baby Tooth zipped through the window just then, shaking off the cold and puffing her feathers before flying over to Tooth. They chittered for a moment before a serious look came over Tooth's face. "Would you mind telling us what happened after Jack took Sophie home," she asked gently, cupping Baby Tooth in her hands, "And what happened to you?"

Baby Tooth's eyes got big and darted nervously around the room. She chirped at Tooth, asking a question.

"No, Jack isn't here. He left earlier after he told us about when Jamie started believing," Tooth explained. Baby Tooth slowly nodded, thinking for a moment before giving a tiny sigh. She chirped another question, gesturing around to the others. Tooth nodded with a smile, "Yes, I'll translate." Baby Tooth began the story.

"They had just dropped Sophie off in her bed with no problems at all when Jack started hearing something- a voice? Calling his name." She looked up. "Baby Tooth didn't hear it until after Jack said something, but by then he was already moving. He said he knew the voice…"

Her eyebrows furrowed for a moment before her eyes widened in realization.

"Oh no," she whispered. Baby Tooth nodded solemnly.

"what? what is it Tooth?" Bunny and Sandy were equally lost and impatient.

"I didn't realize… He never told us this part…" Tooth went on, trailing as she looked lost in thought.

"Hey, Sheila, wanna get us in on the thought," Bunny said with a huff.

She turned to look at the Guardians, gaze a little shocked. "Part of the Tooth boxes magic is that it will call to whoever is closest when a child's memories are needed to be activated. The call is irresistible, at least to an ally. Pitch wouldn't have been affected, but Jack…" her expression grew pained. "He wouldn't have known what it was, only that it was calling to him and he couldn't NOT follow it. They followed the voice to a hole in the ground, with an old bed frame over it- Pitch's lair."

The room was quiet for a moment as the words hung in the air. "So... Pitch lured 'im into a trap?" Bunny asked incredulously. "Using his memories?"

Tooth nodded sadly. Baby Tooth squeaked to catch their attention again, making sure they were all paying attention before continuing.

"They jumped into the hole. Baby Tooth says she figured out what the call was a little after Jack started hearing it, his tooth box, but she couldn't get him to understand and stop. They went further in and found her sisters in cages" Tooth's expression became fierce and angry at this before she went on. "Jack tried to free them, but the cages were locked. Then the voice came again and Pitch had the box." Baby Tooth's face grew sad for her friend as this part was told. "Pitch started taunting Jack about his fears, and had him running like crazy through his lair. Baby Tooth says they kept popping in and out of the shadows, so she didn't catch all the conversation."

Baby Tooth quietly chirped something else, staring at her mother in stubborn determination. Tooth gave her a sigh before nodding in understanding. "She also says that she wouldn't tell us what was said anyway- It's Jack's story to tell there and we'd have to ask him."

"Da, we will," North promised with a serious expression. "But what happened to YOU? Will you tell us that?" Sandy made a pleading gesture to the little fairy to go on.

Baby Tooth nodded and continued to tell Tooth the story for translating. "She was left behind by the cages with her sisters. Pitch caught her after Jack disappeared and stuffed her in his jacket- " Tooth stopped at this point and started laughing at the look on Baby Tooth's face. "Apparently, it didn't smell good in there, and Baby Tooth thinks Pitch needs to start worrying about personal hygiene more, and taking over the world less."

This had the rest of the Guardians chuckling. Baby Tooth made one more face before she went on.

"Pitch had her trapped for a bit and she didn't know what was going on. Then he grabbed her and pulled her out, and they were in someplace very cold and snowy, and Jack was standing across from Pitch, walking away. Pitch made Jack… HE DID WHAT?" Tooth yelled the last part, fury sparking in her eyes. She leapt into the air, wings buzzing at a frantic speed. The rest of them flinched at the sudden shift from tooth fairy to warrior queen. "Where is he? I'm going to need more quarters- Pitch is losing a lot more teeth tonight!"

Sandy flew up in front of her with a wary and concerned look- whether for Tooth or Pitch, it was hard to tell. He spread his arms out in front of him questioningly.

"Pitch made Jack trade his staff to save Baby Tooth," Tooth growled in rage. "He used one of MY FAIRIES as a bargaining chip against OUR SNOWFLAKE."

"WHAT?" A collective cry came from below.

Baby Tooth zipped in front of her mother with outstretched arms, chirping frantically. "I WILL NOT CALM- wait, what?" Tooth slowly began to descend, listening intently to her mini, wings moving at a more sedate speed. "He… he actually gave up his staff? Oh, Jack…" Tooth whispered. She sank onto the ground.

Sandy sat beside her and gave a comforting pat. "Thanks Sandy," Tooth whispered. She hung her head. "He went through so much, even before we really met him. And then we turned on him, and Pitch almost hurt him by taking his staff."

Baby Tooth, hovering nearby with concern on her face, winced at the words and caught Tooth's attention again. "Baby Tooth?"

The little fairy gave her mother a sad look before starting to slowly chirp.

"Pitch broke his staff?" Tooth asked incredulously? "But it was fixed when we saw him!"

"Yeah, it was fine when we saw 'im after going to find Jamie," Bunny chimed in.

More chirping followed.

"He can do that?"

Baby Tooth shrugged, then opened her arms. Apparently.

"Do what, Toothie?" North questioned.

"Fix his staff. Baby Tooth says that Jack did it after Pitch tossed both of them into a chasm after Baby Tooth jabbed Pitch with her beak." She gave a fond look to the mini before continuing. "And after he fixed the staff, they went back to free the rest of my fairies but none of them could fly at that point- was that because Pitch hurt you or because of lack of belief?" Tooth asked her fairy in concern.

Baby Tooth twittered a response.

"Ah. Belief, good."

"Well, go on," Bunny urged when Tooth was quiet for a little.

"Oh, right. Then Baby Tooth says the lights on the Globe started going out until there was just one left- Jamie, and Baby Tooth said to leave her there while Jack went to she could help her sisters. After that, they just waited until they could fly again and activate the tooth boxes."

"And we know what Jack was doing after he left Baby Tooth," Bunny said quietly.

Sandy nodded before pausing. He signed to Bunny.

"Did we apologize? Mate, of course we di- Oh crickey." His eyes widened.

"Shostakovich." North cursed, echoing the thought and Tooth winced.

Sandy smacked his forehead and gave the rest of them a look.

"Guys, I'm going to go find Jack," Tooth said determinedly. "You coming?"

"To the sleigh!" North yelled and started walking there with Bunny complaining about the 'death trap' the whole way there.

Sandy looked towards the moon in exasperation. What was he going to do with these guys? Shaking his head, he followed them towards the ice caves.

 _Hope you enjoyed! Leave me a review? Pretty please? With cherries and sprinkles? Thanks for reading, you wonderful people you! :D I love and appreciate you!_


	3. Chapter 3

_Jack and the Globe Lights Part 3_

 _Okay, so I didn't think I'd have time to write a chapter three anytime soon, but look what happened despite me not really having time. But honestly, it sort of… wrote itself? A LOT easier to get written down than Chapter 2, that's for sure._

 _Major thanks to all those lovely and wonderful people who reviewed! You have really helped me WANT to write this and made me feel that it's worth writing. I love you all dearly, and it's to you all that I dedicate this final chapter! Enjoy!_

 _Oh- real quick, I don't own Rise of the Guardians._

Jack was in the middle of a major snow day snowball fight with Jamie and the rest of his believers when he thought he heard the jingle of North's sleigh overhead. Pausing with snowball in hand, he glanced up at the sky. Seeing nothing, he shrugged and turned back to the battle.

However, the momentary lapse in his attention opened him up for a sudden onslaught of snowballs from Jamie and the others right in the face.

"Agh! No! I've been hit! Oh, the pain! My… spleen!" Jack collapsed into the snow dramatically and didn't get up.

Jamie and Pippa exchanged an eye roll; Monty, Caleb, Claude, and Cupcake were in the background trying to hold back their laughter while Sophie was giggling without restraint.

Shaking his head, Jamie left the safety of his snow fort walls and approached the fallen spirit. "Your spleen? Seriously, Jack? Jaaack… WOAH!" Jamie lunged backwards when Jack sprang up with a maniacal cackle and hurled snowballs at the kids, who ducked and hurried to create ammo.

"Ah ha! Naturally you fell for the clever tricks of Jack Frost, the Guardian of F- AHHH!" His sentence was interrupted by one Tooth Fairy tackling him to the ground face first, crying "Jack, Jack, we're so sorry!" She instantly sprang back up once she realized how hard she had tackled him.

Jack lay dazed on the ground, groaning. "Wow, Tooth. I was kidding about being in pain earlier, but not anymore."

"Oh no! I'm so sorry! How's your teeth?" She immediately hoisted him off the ground with her uncanny strength and started poking around in his mouth.

"Tooth, fingers out of mouth," North called as he, Bunny, and Sandy came upon the scene. The sleigh was parked behind them just before the tree line. Baby Tooth zipped to sit on Jack shoulder, chittering happily to see her friend. Sophie ran over the Bunny, calling "Easter Bunny, hop hop hop!" Bunny scooped her up into a hug.

Tooth backed away. "Sorry…" She said with a sheepish smile.

Jack gave a crooked smile, running a finger over Baby Tooth's head. "Yeah, that's about the third time you've said it in the minute you've been here. What's up?"

Sandy flew in front of him and started to sign, golden sand changing shape so rapidly it was impossible for anyone to tell what it was supposed to mean.

Jack chuckled softly, remembering a similar situation. "Not helping Sandy, but thanks anyway."

Sandy broke off his sand images and fixed him with a penetrating stare. He pointed at the Guardians gathered behind him, then at himself, then at Jack. He made a simple frowny face with his sand.

"… Are you saying you guys are upset with me? About earlier?" Jack asked in confusion and a little hurt.

"No, no, Jack, we want to apologize!" North rushed.

"Yeah, mate, we realized after we talked about it that none of us had actually… apologized for Easter," Bunny finished haltingly, lowering Sophie to the ground.

"And we treated you terribly, and we didn't listen and try to hear your side of the story before jumping to conclusions, and we're really sorry," Tooth went on before Jack jumped in.

"Woah, woah, guys! I get it. Yeah, you weren't super great after I messed up Easter, but I understand," Jack said. Bunny broke in.

"Mate, you DIDN'T mess up Easter- that was Pitch. We- no, I- just lashed out and blamed it on you." His ears lowered at the last part. "It wasn't your fault."

Jack gave them a strange look. "If I had been there, I could have helped save the eggs and Easter, so yeah, it was kind of my fault."

"No, Sweet Tooth, it wasn't." Tooth spoke gently. "Who's to say that you could have stopped him if you had been there? Maybe you would have gotten hurt trying, I mean he did knock you down later…" all the Guardians but Sandy grimaced at the mental image of Jack hitting the dumpster after being swatted from the sky.

Jamie took advantage of the lull in conversation. "Hey guys, remember us?" He asked, waving his arms around. "Big, important believers, helped you defeat Pitch, same totally lost kids who don't understand a thing you're talking about?" Except for the dumpster thing, he thought with a wince- he remembered that.

The Guardians turned to the kids that they had mostly forgotten about, wide eyed. "Ahh…" North tried to start, but couldn't quite get it out.

"Basically these guys are trying to apologize for Easter Morning," Jack spoke for him. "What happened is Sophie had gotten into Bunny's lair," he started, ignoring Jamie's cry of "she did?!" and the muttering about the Warren not being a lair, "and I took her home but Pitch sort of sidetracked me and while he was busy delaying me he ruined Easter." Baby Tooth patted his cheek comfortingly as he paused at the last words; he turned towards the Guardians with a gentle smile on his face.

"When Pitch pushed me out of his caves I went to go find everybody but when I got there, Bunny had been walked through." All the kids winced at this- Jack had described what being walked through felt like and it did NOT sound fun. "I showed up with a tooth box, something that Pitch stole from Tooth, and these guys thought I had sided with Pitch, which I would never consider," he added the last part while mentally silencing the whisper from a dark part of his mind of _you DID consider it_. "And then they told me to get lost, so I did."

"Um… that's an awful lot of apologies for just telling you to get lost," Pippa said doubtfully, cocking her head at the older Guardians. They looked shamefully at the ground while Sandy shook his head.

Jack rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Well, yeah, I guess…"

"We jumped to conclusions without asking Jack questions," Tooth explained sorrowfully.

"Nor did we wait to hear answers to the questions we DID ask," North finished. "We thought we couldn't trust him, but we were wrong."

"I almost punched 'im in the face," Bunny broke in. Sandy immediately smacked him in the arm and shook his finger at him. "Right, still ticked that I didn't mention that?" Bunny asked sheepishly, and Sandy raised his eyebrows. _Ya think?_

Jack was watching with an amused expression on his face before he turned to the kids again. "Yeah, so apparently these guys didn't tell Sandy about that after you helped bring him back, so… we rehashed it at a meeting." He gave them a smirk. "Personally, I don't think it's a big deal anymore, I mean it's all in the past now, but whatever helps them sleep at night, I guess," he shrugged.

"Mate, how are you so calm about this?" Bunny asked, his expression twisted in confusion. "We were complete ratbags to ya, but you act like it's not a big deal!"

Jack grinned. "Aw, Bunny, where's the fun in holding grudges?" His expression softened. "'Sides, you apologized, and that's what counts, right?"

The Guardians reluctantly agreed, seeing Jack was willing to leave it behind them. They missed the wink Jack sent to the kids as well as the snowball piles that suddenly formed in front of them. "You know what would be a really great way to show you're sincere though…?" Jack trailed off before launching a snowball at Bunny. "Giving us a challenge!"

The kids all hurled snowballs at the flustered and blustering Guardians before they scattered behind the fort walls grinning.

"Oh, it is ON!" Tooth cried with a competitive smile.

Sandy echoed the thought with a fist shaken at the kids and an evil smirk on his face.

The Guardians began a rapid-pace dash to roll their snowballs together under continued fire from the kids and Jack.

"Come on, Cotton-tail, the eggs could do better than that!"

Jack ducked behind a snow wall to duck Bunny's snowball and to catch his breath, Wind ruffling his hair gently, and smiled at how things had turned out. He hadn't been kidding, he really didn't think it was a big deal anymore, but the fact that they had made such a big deal out of apologizing really meant a lot. Maybe they really were ready to hear the rest of the story, the winter spirit mused, and to hear what Pitch had offered in Antarctica. Maybe he COULD start to open up to them. If they asked…

His thoughts were interrupted by Jamie's cries of "Jack, a little help here?!" and North and Bunny's laughter.

Jack grinned. He'd worry about it later. For now, being with his friends and, dare he say family, was more important.

The winter spirit leapt over the snow wall, snowballs in hand, and quickly went to turn the tide of the battle.

Now THIS was fun.

 _Okay, there you go! Chapter three of Jack and the Globe Lights, and the last thing I'll be writing for a while. I've got things going on in my life that require a long hiatus- if you are REALLY curious, check out my profile for an explanation._

 _But despite that, I'd still REALLY REALLY REALLY appreciate your reviews! They mean a lot to me, and help make my day!_

 _Which prompts another big round of applause for everyone who reviewed previous chapters. I wouldn't have written chapter two, let alone chapter three, if it weren't for you guys encouraging me to continue it!_

 _So… let me know how I did? That review box is just DYING to be useful, I'm sure. Thanks so much!_


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